Presently, while plants for the processing and developing of photosensitive materials such as film and photographic paper vary greatly, they usually employ a variety of machines (units) for each stage of the development process. Each of these machines (units), while being sequentially operational, are designed to operate independently of one another. Furthermore, each of these machines (units) requires a special operator and has various operational characteristics and speeds.
Unfortunately, the developing and processing plants described above, of which I am aware, suffer from various disadvantages due to the lack of continuity in the process (the "line") brought about by these various machines. For example, such plants require several operators to operate the various, diverse machines (units). Also, such plants often require that the photosensitive material being processed or developed be manually handled in order to effect the transference thereof from one machine (unit) to another. Such disadvantages not only increases the time and cost involved in the process (by requiring several operators) but also expose the photosensitive material to potential damage which results from the continuous manual handling thereof. Finally, this lack of continuity also makes it difficult and expensive to conduct reliable consistent and efficient inspections to insure quality of the process.
Thus, it will be appreciated that there remains a need for providing a plant ("line") for the continuous processing and developing of photosensitive materials in which a means is provided for maintaining the continuity of the process among the various machines (units) utilized therein.